JP2016173436A - Image formation device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To effectively detect the amount of exposed light when a drawer-type structure including a light-sensitive image holding body is withdrawn.SOLUTION: A structure 180 comprises: a measuring unit 183 for measuring the amount of exposed light when the structure is withdrawn from a housing 190; and a structure side connection unit 185 for connecting the measuring unit 183 with a communication path to a device body. The device body includes: a body side first connection unit 201 connected with the structure side connection unit 185 in the state in which the structure 180 is housed in the housing 190; and a body side second connection unit 202 connected with the structure side connection unit 185 in the state in which the structure 180 is withdrawn from the housing 190.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a recording apparatus having a structure in which an upper surface cover is opened and a photoconductor is replaced, and a photosensor is provided in the vicinity of the photoconductor to issue a warning according to the amount of light.

JP 05-061287 A

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus that includes a drawer-type structure including an image carrier that is sensitive to light, and that can effectively detect the amount of exposure when the structure is pulled out. To do.

Claim 1
A housing including an apparatus main body, and a structure including an image carrier that holds an electrostatic latent image and holds a toner image formed by development, housed in the housing so as to be freely drawn out from the housing. An image forming apparatus for forming an image composed of a fixed toner image on a sheet,
A measurement unit that measures the amount of exposure light of the image carrier when the structure is pulled out from the housing; and a structure-side connection unit that connects the measurement unit to a communication path between the apparatus main body and With
The apparatus main body includes a main body-side first connection portion connected to the structure-side connection portion in a state where the structure is accommodated in the case, and the structure in a state where the structure is pulled out from the case. An image forming apparatus comprising: a main body side second connection portion connected to the body side connection portion.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a first warning part that reports a warning when both the main body side first connection part and the main body side second connection part are disconnected from the structure side connection part. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the apparatus includes a second warning unit that reports a warning corresponding to the exposure light amount of the image holding body when the structure-side connection unit is connected to the main body-side second connection unit. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the structure is further driven to emit sound, and the structure-side connecting portion is in a non-connected state with both the main body-side first connecting portion and the main body-side second connecting portion. 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a drive unit that drives the sound generation unit when a certain amount of accumulated exposure light amount reaches a predetermined threshold value. 5. An image forming apparatus.

  Claim 5 is a connection part in which the main body side first connection part is connected to the structure side connection part by wire, and the main body side second connection part is between the structure side connection part. The structure side first connection part and the main body side second connection, wherein the structure side connection part is connected to the main body side first connection part by wire. 5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a structure-side second connection portion that is wirelessly connected to the portion.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a set in which the structural body includes a frame body that is housed in the housing so as to be freely drawn out from the housing, and is detachably attached to the frame body including at least the image holding body and the measurement unit. Have a solid,
In the state in which the assembly is further connected to at least the main body side first connection portion of the main body side first connection portion and the main body side second connection portion, the structure side connection portion from the apparatus main body. A secondary battery that is charged with electric power passing through the structure-side connection portion, and a storage portion in which information is written and stores the information, and the measurement portion and the storage portion include at least the assembly of the assembly 6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus operates with power from the secondary battery in a state of being detached from the frame. 7.

  According to the first aspect, the communication path between the structure and the apparatus main body is connected even when the structure is in the drawn-out state, and the amount of exposure light is transmitted to the apparatus main body.

  According to claim 2, the operator's attention is urged.

  According to the third aspect, it is possible to respond to the warning by a fine warning.

  According to the fourth aspect, even when the assembly is removed from the frame body, a warning is given that the amount of exposure light reaches a predetermined amount.

  According to the fifth aspect, compared to the case where the second connecting portion is connected by wire, the allowable range of the amount of the drawer that can be connected to the second connecting portion of the structure is wide.

  According to the sixth aspect, even when the assembly is in a state of being detached from the frame, the amount of exposure light from the image carrier can be accurately detected.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a printer as an embodiment of an image forming apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an appearance of the printer described with reference to FIG. 1. It is the figure which showed schematic structure of the image carrier module. It is the schematic diagram which showed both the state (solid line) with which the frame was pulled out from the housing | casing, and the accommodated state (broken line). It is the figure which showed the circuit board and the 1st connection terminal by the side of a main body. It is the figure which showed the circuit board and the 2nd connection terminal by the side of a main body. It is the figure which showed the process accompanying replacement | exchange of an image carrier module. It is the figure which showed the arithmetic processing content and the warning display content. It is the figure which showed the circuit board of the state connected to the 1st connection terminal in a main body in 2nd Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the circuit board of the state connected to the 2nd connection terminal in a main body in 2nd Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the process accompanying replacement | exchange of the image carrier module in 2nd Embodiment. It is the figure which showed schematic structure of the image carrier module in 3rd Embodiment. It is the figure which showed an example of the circuit which performs the calculation that the integrated light quantity exceeded the threshold light quantity. It is the figure which showed the circuit board of the state connected to the 1st connection terminal in a main body in 4th Embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a circuit board when an image carrier module is pulled out from a housing of a printer main body in a fourth embodiment.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a printer as an embodiment of the image forming apparatus of the present invention.

  A plurality (two in this case) of paper trays 150 are provided in the lower part of the printer 100, and the paper P before use, which is used for image printing, is stacked in each paper tray 150. Contained. When printing an image, the paper P is picked up one by one from the designated paper tray among the plurality of paper trays 150 by the paper take-out roll 151, and moved on the paper transport path 153 by the paper transport roll 152 or the like in the direction of arrow D. It is conveyed to.

  The printer 100 is equipped with four image forming engines 130. In each image forming engine 130, a single-color toner image is formed with a single-color toner having a different color for each of the image forming engines 130Y, 130M, 130C, and 130K.

  Here, regarding the image forming engine 130, when representing the toner color, “Y” (yellow), “M” (magenta), which are codes representing the toner color in addition to the code “130” representing the image forming engine. , “C” (cyan), “K” (black). For the description irrelevant to the color, the reference numeral representing the color is omitted, and the image forming engine 130 is referred to. The same applies to other elements other than the image forming engine.

  In the present embodiment, all four image forming engines 130 have the same configuration. Each image forming engine 130 includes a photoconductor 131 that rotates in the direction of arrow A, and a charger 132, an exposure device 133, a developing device 134, and a cleaner 135 disposed around the photoconductor 131.

  The charger 132 is in contact with the photosensitive member 131 and uniformly charges the surface of the photosensitive member 131.

  The exposure device 133 irradiates the photosensitive member 131 with exposure light 133a modulated based on the image signal, thereby forming an electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive member 131.

  Each exposure unit 133 is input with an image signal representing a single-color image formed from the color toner shared by the image forming engine 130 from the control unit 200. The exposure device 133 emits exposure light 133a modulated with an image signal representing the monochrome image, and an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the image signal representing the monochrome image is formed on the photoreceptor 131. Is done.

  The developing device 134 includes a developing roller 134 a that conveys toner to a region facing the photoconductor 131, and develops the electrostatic latent image formed on the photoconductor 131 with the toner so that a monochromatic toner is formed on the photoconductor 131. Form an image.

  Each toner cartridge 139 is provided above each image forming engine 130. Each toner cartridge 139 contains a single color toner for each corresponding image forming engine 130. The toner in the toner cartridge 139 is supplied into the developing device 134 and used for forming a toner image. The toner cartridge 139 is replaceable, and is replaced with a new toner cartridge 139 when empty.

  An intermediate transfer unit 160 is disposed below the image forming engine 130. The intermediate transfer unit 160 includes an endless intermediate transfer belt 161, a driving roll 162 that rotationally drives the intermediate transfer belt 161, a tension applying roll 163 that applies tension to the intermediate transfer belt 161, and an intermediate transfer belt 161. A pressing roll 164 that presses against the secondary transfer roll 170 is provided. The intermediate transfer belt 161 is supported by the driving roll 162, the tension applying roll 163, and the pressing roll 164, and receives a rotational driving force from the driving roll 162 to move along the four image forming engines 130. Circulates and moves in the direction of arrow B. Further, the intermediate transfer unit 160 includes four primary transfer rolls 165 and a cleaner 166.

  The four primary transfer rolls 165 are disposed at positions facing the photoconductor 131 of each image forming engine 130 with the intermediate transfer belt 161 interposed therebetween, and the toner image formed on the photoconductor 131 is intermediated. It plays a role of transferring onto the transfer belt 161.

  The toner images formed on the respective photoreceptors 131 of the four image forming engines 130 are sequentially overlapped on the intermediate transfer belt 161 moving in the arrow B direction by the action of each primary transfer roll 163. Transcribed.

  After the toner image is transferred to the photoreceptor 131, the toner remaining on the surface is removed by the cleaner 135.

  The toner images transferred so as to sequentially overlap the intermediate transfer belt 161 are transferred onto the paper P that has been transported in time by the action of the secondary transfer roll 170. The sheet P that has received the transfer of the toner image is further conveyed on the sheet conveying path 153 and is heated and pressurized by the fixing device 175, and an image composed of the fixed toner image is printed on the sheet P. The paper is discharged from 100 onto a paper discharge tray (not shown).

  On the other hand, the toner remaining on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 161 is removed by the cleaner 166 after the toner image is transferred.

  Here, the four image forming engines 130 include, for each image forming engine 130, an image carrier module 181 (see FIG. 2) including an image carrier 131, a charger 132, and a cleaner 135, and a developing device 134. The developer module 182 is modularized. A total of eight modules comprising the four image carrier modules 181 and the four developing device modules 182 constituting the four image forming engines 130 are drawn out frame 180 (see also FIG. 2). ) And a total of eight modules are pulled out from the casing 190 (see FIG. 2) of the printer 100 together with the frame body 180 or stored in the casing. . In the state where the frame body 180 is pulled out, the module unit can be replaced.

  The printer 100 shown in FIG. 1 includes a control unit 200 and a UI (user interface) 300. The control unit 200 is responsible for controlling the linked operations of the above-described units of the printer 100.

  The UI 300 includes a touch panel type display screen 310 and plays a role of displaying various operation screens and receiving operations by the user. In the printer 100, processing corresponding to the operation by the user on the operation screen is executed. The display screen 310 also has a role of displaying a warning described later.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the appearance of the printer described with reference to FIG. Here, the components of the printer 100 excluding the frame 180 and the modules 181 and 182 mounted on the frame 180 are referred to as a printer main body.

  A double door 191 is provided on the casing 190 of the printer 100.

  FIG. 2 shows a state where the door 191 is opened. A frame 180 is accommodated in the back of the door 191, and four image carrier modules 181 and four developer modules 182 are alternately mounted on the frame 180.

  The charger 132 provided in each image carrier module 181 is pressed against the image carrier 131 by a spring member 132b disposed between the charger 132 and the support 132a.

  An optical sensor 183 is installed on the front side (door 191 side) of the four image carrier modules 181. The reason why the optical sensor 183 is installed on the front side is to detect the amount of exposure light without delay from the time when the door 191 is opened.

  The two paper trays 150 arranged below the door 191 can be pulled out one by one, and paper is replenished to the drawn paper tray 150.

  Further, the four toner cartridges 139 disposed above the door 191 are pulled out from the housing 190 and replaced for each toner cartridge 139.

  Further, a display screen 310 shown in FIG.

  Here, the frame 190 corresponds to an example of a frame according to the present invention, and the image carrier module 181 corresponds to an example of an assembly according to the present invention. In the present embodiment, the entire structure including the frame 190, the four image carrier modules 181 and the four developing device modules 182 mounted on the frame 190 is the structure referred to in the present invention. It corresponds to an example.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a schematic structure of the image carrier module.

The image carrier module 181 includes an image carrier 131, a charger 132, and a cleaner 135. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, an optical sensor 183 is installed on the front side. A circuit board 184 is provided on the back side. The circuit board 184 is provided with a connection terminal 185 for connecting a communication path with the printer main body.
The circuit board 185 is equipped with a memory circuit (not shown). In this memory circuit, various contents relating to the image carrier module 181 such as the use history of the image carrier module 181 and the amount of exposure light to be described later are recorded, and can be rewritten as necessary.

  Further, the amount of exposure light detected by the optical sensor 183 is transmitted to the control unit 200 (see FIG. 1) provided in the printer main body via a connection terminal 185 provided on the circuit board 184.

  A charger 132 is disposed above the image carrier 131.

  When the frame body 180 including the image carrier module 181 is pulled out from the housing 190, the image carrier 131 provided in the image carrier module 181 is exposed to light. At this time, light does not strike the area of the image carrier 131 that is in contact with the charger 132, and light strikes both sides thereof. For this reason, the image carrier 131 has a different degree of light work depending on the region. If this difference in light work is large, it will appear as a horizontal stripe image defect on the printed image. For this reason, here, the optical sensor 183 is mounted, and the amount of exposure light is detected.

  However, there is a problem in how the image carrier module 181 is transmitted to the printer main body when the amount of exposure light reaches a limit, for example, when the image carrier module 181 is pulled out from the housing 190. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the following configuration is adopted.

  FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing both the state in which the frame is pulled out from the housing (solid line) and the state in which the frame is stored (broken line).

  As described with reference to FIG. 3, the image carrier module 181 mounted on the frame body 180 is provided with the circuit board 184 on the back side, and the connection terminal 185 is provided on the circuit board 184. Is provided. The connection terminal 185 provided on the circuit board 184 corresponds to an example of the structure-side connection portion according to the present invention.

  Further, in the printer main body side, that is, in the housing 190, a first connection terminal 201 is provided on the back side, and a second connection terminal 202 is provided on the front side. The first connection terminal 201 and the second connection terminal 202 correspond to examples of the main body side first connection portion and the main body side second connection portion, respectively, according to the present invention.

  When the frame 180 on which the image carrier module 181 is mounted is pushed in the storage direction indicated by the arrow R, the connection terminal 185 on the circuit board 184 is connected to the first connection terminal 201 on the main body side, while the frame When the body 180 is pulled out in the pulling direction indicated by the arrow F, the connection terminal 185 on the circuit board 184 is connected to the second connection terminal 202 on the main body side. Therefore, even when the frame 180 is pulled out from the housing 190, the light amount information detected by the optical sensor 183 installed in the image carrier module 181 is the control unit 200 (FIG. 1) on the main body side. Reference) in real time, and it is possible to respond according to the amount of light without time delay.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the circuit board and the first connection terminal on the main body side.

  FIG. 5 shows a state immediately before the frame body 180 on which the image carrier module 181 is mounted is pushed into the housing 190 in the direction of the arrow R and immediately before being connected to the first connection terminal 201 on the main body side. The circuit board 184 at the position is indicated by a one-dot chain line. Further, in FIG. 5, the circuit board 184 in a state where the frame body 180 is further pushed in the direction of the arrow R and connected to the first connection terminal 201 on the main body side is indicated by a solid line.

  The connection terminal 185 on the circuit board 184 has five contacts, a first contact 185a to a fifth contact 185e. Of these five contacts, the first contact 185a and the fifth contact 185e are contacts that extend long on the circuit board 184 in the direction of arrow R. On the other hand, the second contact point 185b is a short contact point provided only on the rear portion of the circuit board 184 in the direction of the arrow R. Further, the third contact 183c and the fourth contact 185d are short-length contacts provided only on the front portion of the circuit board 184 in the direction of the arrow R.

  When the frame body 180 (see FIG. 4) is pushed to the final position in the direction of arrow R, the connection terminal 185 on the circuit board 184 is connected to the first connection terminal 201 on the main body side. Similarly to the connection terminal 185 on the circuit board 184, the first connection terminal 201 is provided with first to fifth contacts 201a to 201e. Then, the first connection terminal 201 is positioned at the connection terminal 185 on the circuit board 184 by a one-dot chain line A when the frame body 180 (see FIG. 4) is pushed to the final position in the direction of arrow R. It will be in the state of touching. That is, of the five contacts 185a to 185e constituting the connection terminal 185 on the circuit board 184, the four contacts 185a and 185c to 185d excluding the second contact 185b are the five contacts constituting the first connection terminal 201. The four contacts 201a and 201c to 201d other than the second contact 201b of 201a to 201e are connected to each other. However, the second contact point 185b on the circuit board 184 is a short contact point provided only in the rear of the direction of the arrow R, and thus is not connected.

  Here, the first contact 201a of the first connection terminal 201 is a ground contact. The second contact 201b is a contact for inputting light amount information.

  The third contact 201c and the fourth contact 201d are for accessing a memory circuit (not shown) mounted on the circuit board 184. While the third contact 201c and the fourth contact 201d are connected to the third contact 185c and the fourth contact 185d on the circuit board 184, information is stored in the memory circuit by the control unit 200 (see FIG. 1) on the main body side. Is written or information is read from the memory circuit. Further, the fifth contact 201e is a contact for power supply. That is, when the circuit board 184 is connected to the first connection terminal 201, power is supplied to the circuit board 184, and the memory circuit mounted on the circuit board 184 is accessed.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the circuit board and the second connection terminal on the main body side.

  FIG. 6 shows a position immediately before the frame body 180 on which the image carrier module 181 is mounted is connected to the second connection terminal 202 on the main body side when the frame body 180 is pulled out from the housing 190 in the direction of arrow F. The circuit board 184 in FIG. Further, in FIG. 6, the circuit board 184 in a state where the frame body 180 is further pulled out in the direction of the arrow F and is connected to the second connection terminal 202 on the main body side is indicated by a solid line.

  The configuration of the connection terminal 185 on the circuit board 184 is as described with reference to FIG. Similarly to the first connection terminal 201 shown in FIG. 5, the second connection terminal 202 on the main body side also has a first contact 202a to a fifth contact 202e.

  When the frame body 180 (see FIG. 4) is pulled out to the final position, the second connection terminal 202 contacts the circuit board 184 at a position indicated by a one-dot chain line B. That is, of the five contacts 202a to 202e constituting the second connection terminal 202, the first contact 202a, the second contact 202b, and the fifth contact 202e are connected to the first contact 185a on the circuit board 184, The second contact 185b and the fifth contact 185e are connected to each other. However, the third contact 202c and the fourth contact 202d remain unconnected to the circuit board 184. Here, the optical sensor 183 is connected to the second contact 185b (and the first contact 185a (ground) and the fifth contact 185e (power supply)) on the circuit board 184. That is, in the state where the circuit board 184 shown in FIG. 6 is connected to the second connection terminal 202, the light quantity information detected by the optical sensor 183 is transmitted to the control unit 200 (FIG. 1) on the main body side via the second contact 202b. See). On the other hand, the third contact point 185 c and the fourth contact point 185 d on the circuit board 184 are not connected to the second connection terminal 202. Therefore, in the case of this embodiment, when the frame body 180 is pulled out, a storage circuit (not shown) mounted on the circuit board 184 is not accessed. Information on the amount of light detected by the optical sensor 183 is sent to the control unit 200 (see FIG. 1) in the main body, and the storage circuit on the circuit board 184 stores the frame body 180 in the housing 190. It is written by the control unit 200.

  The fact that the circuit board 184 is connected to the first connection terminal 201, that is, that the frame body 180 is housed in the housing 190 of the main body, as shown in FIG. It is detected that the memory circuit on the circuit board 184 can be accessed through the contact 201d. Further, the fact that the frame body 180 is pulled out from the housing 190 and the circuit board 184 is connected to the second connection terminal 202 indicates that the second contact point 185b on the circuit board 184 and the second contact point 185b as shown in FIG. It is detected that the second contact 202b of the connection terminal 202 is conductive. In other words, when access to the memory circuit on the circuit board 184 is impossible and continuity with the second contact 184b on the circuit board 184 is not detected, the circuit board 184 is connected to the first connection on the main body side. This means that the terminal 201 and the second connection terminal 202 are not connected to each other. As this unconnected state, there are further a state of a first state and a second state. That is, the first state is a state in which the frame body 180 is pulled out halfway (stored halfway) between the state where the frame body 180 is drawn as shown by a solid line in FIG. The second state is a state in which the circuit board 184 on the holder module 181 is disconnected from the second connection terminal 202 by removing the image holder module 181 from the frame body 180 in the pulled out state. .

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating processing associated with replacement of the image carrier module.

  The control unit 200 shown in FIG. 1 determines whether or not the circuit board 184 is in a “first connection” state in which the circuit board 184 is connected to the first connection terminal 201 on the main body side (step S101). It is repeatedly monitored whether or not it is in the “second connection” state connected to the second connection terminal 202 on the side (step S102). When in the first connection state, a normal image forming sequence is executed in accordance with an instruction from the user (step S103). However, here, an optical work recovery sequence, which will be described later, may be executed prior to the execution of the image forming sequence.

  In the second connection state, the light quantity information detected by the optical sensor 183 is received, and the calculation process relating to the light quantity is performed (step S104), and the display screen 310 (see FIGS. 2 and 4) is displayed. A warning corresponding to the calculation result is displayed (step S105). The warning display in step S105 by the control unit 200 (see FIG. 1) corresponds to an example of a second warning unit according to the present invention.

  Further, when there is a non-connection state that is neither the first connection state nor the second connection state, a warning corresponding to the non-connection state is displayed (step S106). The warning display in step S106 by the control unit 200 (see FIG. 1) corresponds to an example of the first warning unit according to the present invention.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing calculation processing contents and warning display contents.

  FIG. 8A shows one of the calculation processing contents in step S104. Here, it is determined whether or not the light amount (instantaneous light amount) detected by the optical sensor 183 exceeds the threshold Th1. This threshold value Th1 is a threshold value for determining whether or not it is an instantaneous light amount that is expected to be unable to secure a sufficient time for exchanging the image carrier module 181. When the instantaneous light quantity exceeds the threshold Th1, a warning “Please darken the room lighting” is displayed on the display screen 310.

  FIG. 8B is also one of the calculation processing contents in step S104. Here, the amount of light detected by the optical sensor 183 is integrated to calculate the integrated amount of light. Then, from the rate of increase of the integrated light quantity, it is calculated in how many minutes the integrated light quantity will exceed the threshold value Th2. This threshold value Th2 is a threshold value that means that the optical work of the image carrier 131 reaches a level at which it may appear as a defect on the image formed by the image forming apparatus 100. When the integrated light quantity is likely to exceed the threshold Th2 in another 5 minutes, a warning “Please finish the work within 5 minutes” is displayed on the display screen 310.

  The same applies to FIG. 8C, and when the integrated light amount is about to exceed the threshold Th2 in 3 minutes, the warning display on the display screen 310 is changed to “Please finish the work within 3 minutes”. The

  Further, as shown in FIG. 8D, when the integrated light amount is about to exceed the threshold Th2 in one minute, a warning display on the display screen 310 will indicate “Please finish the work immediately and close the door.” Changed to

  FIG. 8E shows a warning display in step S106 of FIG. In this case, the amount of light cannot be detected, and a warning message “Please attach correctly” is displayed.

  Further, FIG. 8F is a display that may be performed when the first connection (step S101) is once turned off and then turned on again.

  When the first connection (step S101) is once turned off and then turned on again, the control unit 200 (see FIG. 1) determines the integrated light amount until the first connection is turned off and turned on again as a threshold value. It is determined whether or not Th2 is exceeded. That the integrated light quantity exceeds the threshold value Th2 means that the optical work of the image carrier 131 has reached a level at which there is a possibility of appearing as a defect on the screen. Further, here, it is determined whether or not the blank time that has not been in either the “first connection” or the “second connection” exceeds the threshold Th3. When neither the “first connection” nor the “second connection” is in the state, it is impossible to detect the amount of light. For safety reasons, when there is a blank time exceeding the threshold Th3, the light work is imaged. There is a risk of appearing above. It should be noted that, here, a calculation that integrates both the integrated light amount and the blank time may be performed, such as estimating the integrated light amount when there is a disconnected state by multiplying the rate of increase of the integrated light amount by the blank time. .

  When there is a possibility that the light work may appear as a defect on the image, the light work recovery process is executed prior to the image forming process. This optical work recovery process itself is a conventionally known technique and will not be described here. While the optical work recovery process is being performed, a message “There is a risk of optical work. Recovery process is being executed.” Is displayed on the display screen 310.

  Here, the warning is performed by displaying on the display screen 310, but a warning by a sound such as a buzzer sound may be used together.

  In the embodiment described here, the structure in which the four image carrier modules 181 and the four developing device modules 182 are mounted on the frame body 180 and pulled out together with the frame body 180 is described. Can be applied without this structure. For example, the present invention can be applied to a structure in which a pair of one image carrier module 181 and one developer module 182 can be independently pulled out and stored one by one. In this case, a pair of the image carrier module 181 and the developer module 182 corresponds to an example of the structure referred to in the present invention.

  The present invention can also be applied to a structure in which the image carrier module 181 can be pulled out and stored independently. In this case, the image carrier module 181 itself corresponds to an example of the structure referred to in the present invention.

  In the above-described embodiment, the optical sensor 183 is mounted on each of the four image carrier modules 181, but may be mounted on the frame body 180. In that case, when the image carrier module 181 is taken out from the frame body 180, the photosensor 183 mounted on the frame body 180 has an inaccurate amount of light from the image carrier module 181 taken out. The image carrier module 181 is treated as being unable to detect the amount of light as in the above-described embodiment. Alternatively, the amount of exposure light of the extracted image carrier module 181 is also represented by the amount of light detected by the optical sensor 183 attached to the frame 180, or a value obtained by multiplying the amount of light by a safety factor is used as the extracted image. It is good also as the exposure light quantity of the holding body module 181.

  This is the end of the description of the first embodiment. Hereinafter, the second and subsequent embodiments will be described.

  In each of the second and subsequent embodiments described below, only the differences from the first embodiment are shown and described.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the circuit board connected to the first connection terminal in the main body according to the second embodiment. Here, FIG. 9A shows a surface on which the connection terminal 185 of the circuit board 184 is provided, and FIG. 9B shows a back surface of the same circuit board 184. .

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the circuit board connected to the second connection terminal in the main body in the second embodiment.

  In the case of the circuit board 184 (see FIG. 5) of the first embodiment described above, the third contact point 185c and the fourth contact point 185d are short contact points that are provided at positions in front of the direction of the arrow R. It is.

On the other hand, in the case of the second embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 9A and 10, the third contact 185c and the fourth contact 185d on the circuit board 185 are the same as the first contact 185a and the fifth contact 185e. Similarly, the terminal extends long in the direction of the drawer / insertion. However, the second contact 185b is a short-length contact that is not connected to the first connection terminal 201 and is connected only to the second connection terminal 202, as in the case of the first embodiment described above. is there.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the circuit board connected to the second connection terminal in the main body in the second embodiment.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 9B, a memory circuit 186 and a battery 187 are mounted on the circuit board 184. In the first embodiment described above, it has been described that the memory circuit is mounted on the circuit board 184. However, in the case of the first embodiment, the memory circuit did not play a major role, and thus remained unillustrated. It was. On the other hand, in the second embodiment, the memory circuit 186 is shown to play an active role. The battery 187 is a secondary battery that is charged by receiving power supplied from the main body. Since the circuit board 184 is provided in the image carrier module 181 (see FIG. 2), when the image carrier module 181 is removed from the frame body 180, charging to the battery 187 is stopped. However, the optical sensor 183 and the memory circuit 186 can continue to operate by receiving power supply from the battery 187.

  Further, as described above, since the third contact 185c and the fourth contact 185d on the circuit board 184 are elongated contacts, the memory circuit 186 includes the first connection terminal 201 and the second connection terminal. Regardless of which of the terminals 202 is connected, access from the main body side is possible.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating processing associated with replacement of the image carrier module in the second embodiment. FIG. 11 corresponds to FIG. 7 in the description of the first embodiment described above.

  Here, steps that perform the same processing as the steps in FIG. 7 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 7, and description thereof is omitted.

  In the process shown in FIG. 11, steps S101 to S103 have been described in FIG.

  If it is determined in step S102 that the second connection state is established, the amount of light detected by the optical sensor 183 is stored in the storage circuit 186. Here, the integrated light quantity is stored in the storage circuit 186. Or you may memorize | store sequentially the instantaneous light quantity for every fixed period without overwriting. Further, the amount of light detected by the optical sensor 183 is transmitted to the control unit 200 on the main body side in real time. In the first embodiment described above, the integrated light amount is calculated by the control unit 200. However, in the second embodiment, neither the first connection nor the second connection is used, and the light amount cannot be known on the main body side. Since the light quantity is also stored (step S202), the light quantity is always written in the storage circuit 186.

  The amount of light written in the storage circuit 186 is transmitted to the control unit 200 on the main body side. In addition, the control unit 200 needs to know information on the instantaneous light amount detected by the optical sensor 183 without delay in order to perform the determination and warning display of FIG. For this reason, the instantaneous light quantity at that time detected by the optical sensor 183 is also transmitted to the control unit 200. In the control unit 200, calculation processing (step S104) is performed, and a warning display (step S105) is performed as necessary. The arithmetic processing in step S104 and the warning display in step S105 have been described with reference to FIG. 7, and description thereof will be omitted here.

  When the connection state is neither the first connection state nor the second connection state, the power supply to the circuit board 184 is cut off, but the optical sensor 183 and the memory circuit 186 are not connected even in the non-connection state. The operation can be continued by receiving power supply from the battery 187, and the light amount detection by the optical sensor 183 and the light amount writing to the storage circuit 186 are continued.

  However, in this non-connected state, the control unit 200 on the main body side cannot know the instantaneous light amount or the integrated light amount, and therefore, the warning display in FIGS. 8A to 8D cannot be performed. For this reason, when in the disconnected state, the warning display (step S106) shown in FIG. 8E is performed as in the case of the first embodiment described above.

  After returning from the disconnected state to the second connected state, in the calculation process in step S104, a determination is made based on the total accumulated light amount including the light amount in the disconnected state.

  When returning to the state of the first connection, as described in the first embodiment, an optical work recovery sequence or the like may be executed prior to the image forming sequence. Whether to execute the light fatigue recovery sequence or the like is determined based on the light amount stored in the storage circuit 186.

  Next, a third embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a schematic structure of the image carrier module in the third embodiment. FIG. 12 corresponds to FIG. 3 in the first embodiment described above. The image carrier module 181 shown in FIG. 12 includes a sound generator 188 that emits a beep sound. The other points are the same as those of the image carrier module shown in FIG.

  Further, the above-described second embodiment (FIGS. 9 to 11) is provided except that the sounding body 188 is provided and a circuit portion for causing the sounding body 188 to emit a beep sound is added on the circuit board 184. The drawings corresponding to FIGS. 9 to 11 are not shown and described, and only the points relating to the sound of the sound generator 188 will be described.

  The sounding body 188 is driven when the integrated light amount exceeds the predetermined threshold light amount when the circuit board 184 is not connected to the first connection terminal 201 and the second connection terminal 202 on the main body side. Beep. Here, the calculation of whether or not the integrated light amount exceeds the threshold light amount is realized by a simple circuit mounted on the circuit board 184.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a circuit that performs calculation that the integrated light amount exceeds the threshold light amount.

  When the circuit board 184 is in a first connection state connected to the first connection terminal 201 on the main body side or in a second connection state connected to the second connection terminal 202 on the main body side, The switch 411 is on, and the capacitor 412 is kept fully charged. The switch 411 is turned off when the connection state is neither the first connection state nor the second connection state. The switch 411 does not have to be a mechanical switch, and may be realized by an electronic component such as a transistor. A control voltage Vb corresponding to the amount of light detected by the optical sensor 183 is input to the discharge circuit 413, and the charge charged in the capacitor 412 passes through the discharge circuit 413 at a discharge rate corresponding to the control voltage Vb. Discharged. This discharge causes the voltage of the capacitor 412 to decrease at a rate corresponding to the discharge rate. The voltage of the capacitor 412 is compared with the threshold voltage Vth by the comparator 414. When the comparator 414 detects that the voltage of the capacitor 412 is lower than the threshold voltage Vth, the sound generator 188 is driven to beep. Make a sound.

  The operator's attention is aroused by the beep sound generated from the sound generator 188.

  Furthermore, a fourth embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a circuit board connected to the first connection terminal in the main body in the fourth embodiment.

  FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the circuit board when the image carrier module is pulled out from the housing of the printer main body in the fourth embodiment.

  Both FIG. 14 and FIG. 15 show the front surface (A) and the back surface (B) of the circuit board 184.

  The connection terminal 185 provided on the circuit board 184 includes a first contact 185a and third to fifth contacts 185c to 185e. That is, as compared with the connection terminal 185 on the circuit board 184 in the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the second terminal 185b for transmitting the light amount detected by the optical sensor 183 in the first embodiment to the main body side. Is not provided.

  In addition, a battery 187 and a wireless chip 189 are mounted on the back surface of the circuit board 184 of the fourth embodiment.

  In addition, on the printer main body side, the wireless connection on the circuit board 184 is provided instead of the second connection terminal 202 at the place (see FIG. 4) where the second connection terminal 202 in the first embodiment is disposed. An antenna 202 ′ for performing wireless communication with the chip 189 is disposed.

  The battery 187 is charged when the circuit board 184 shown in FIG. 14 is in the first connection state where the circuit board 184 is connected to the first connection terminal 201, and is charged when the image carrier module 181 is pulled out from the printer housing. Refused.

  That is, when the circuit on the circuit board 184 and the optical sensor 183 are in a state other than the first connection state, that is, in the second connection state where the image carrier module 181 is properly pulled out from the housing 190. Is also driven by a battery 187. Information on the amount of light detected by the optical sensor 187 is transmitted to the control unit 200 on the main body side via wireless communication between the wireless chip 189 and the antenna 202 ′. Other points in the fourth embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment described above, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  In the case of the fourth embodiment, since the communication between the circuit board 184 and the main body side is performed wirelessly when the image carrier module 181 is pulled out from the printer housing, when the image carrier module 181 is pulled out in the first embodiment. Compared with the case where communication is performed by wire, communication between the circuit board 184 and the main body side is performed even if the amount of the image carrier module 181 pulled out is not enough. That is, by adopting wireless communication here, the drawing amount may be rough, and the workability of replacing the image carrier module 181 is improved.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Printer 130 Image formation engine 131 Photoconductor 132 Charging device 133 Exposure device 134 Development device 135 Cleaner 180 Frame body 181 Image holding body module 183 Optical sensor 184 Circuit board 185 Connection terminal 186 Storage circuit 187 Battery 188 Sounding body 189 Wireless chip 190 Housing Body 191 Door 200 Control unit 201 First connection terminal 202 Second connection terminal 202 ′ Antenna 310 Display screen 411 Switch 412 Capacitor 413 Discharge circuit 414 Comparator

Claims (6)

A housing including an apparatus main body, and a structure including an image carrier that holds an electrostatic latent image and holds a toner image formed by development, housed in the housing so as to be freely drawn out from the housing. An image forming apparatus for forming an image composed of a fixed toner image on a sheet,
A measurement unit that measures the amount of exposure light of the image carrier when the structure is pulled out from the housing; and a structure-side connection unit that connects the measurement unit to a communication path between the apparatus main body and With
The apparatus main body includes a main body-side first connection portion connected to the structure-side connection portion in a state where the structure is accommodated in the case, and the structure in a state where the structure is pulled out from the case. An image forming apparatus comprising: a main body side second connection portion connected to the body side connection portion.   The main body side first connection portion and the main body side second connection portion each include a first warning portion that reports a warning in response to disconnection of the connection with the structure side connection portion. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.   2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a second warning unit that reports a warning corresponding to an exposure light amount of the image holding body when the structure side connection unit is connected to the main body side second connection unit. Or the image forming apparatus according to 2;   The structure body is further driven to emit sound, and the exposed light when the structure side connection portion is in a non-connected state with both the main body side first connection portion and the main body side second connection portion. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a drive unit that drives the sound generation unit when the accumulated amount reaches a predetermined threshold value. 5. The main body side first connection portion is a connection portion connected by wire to the structure side connection portion, and the main body side second connection portion is wirelessly connected to the structure side connection portion. A connecting part,
The structure side where the structure side connection part is wirelessly connected between the structure side first connection part connected to the body side first connection part by wire and the body side second connection part The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a second connection portion. The structure is
A frame housed in the housing so as to be freely drawn out from the housing;
An assembly that includes at least the image carrier and the measurement unit and is detachably attached to the frame,
In the state in which the assembly is further connected to at least the main body side first connection portion of the main body side first connection portion and the main body side second connection portion, the structure side connection portion from the apparatus main body. A secondary battery that is charged with electric power passing through the structure-side connection portion, and a storage portion in which information is written and stores the information, and the measurement portion and the storage portion include at least the assembly of the assembly 6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus operates with power from the secondary battery in a state of being detached from the frame.

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